UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MARA

Faculty of Education

ASSIGNMENT COVER PAGE

PROGRAMME: B.ED.TEACHING OF ENGLISH AS CODE: ED241

SECOND LANGUAGE (TESL)

COURSE NAME: INTRODUCTION TO RESEARCH COURSE CODE: EDU 540

METHODOLOGY

ASGMT TITLE: RESEARCH PROPOSAL ASGMT PERCENTAGE: 50%

LECTURER: Assoc Professor Dr. ROS A.YAHAYA GROUP: TESL 5B

SUBMISSION DATE: 21/7/2020

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SIGNA
FULL NAME STD. ID HP
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1 NUR HANIM BINTI SAHABUDDIN 2017585459 01137433522

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 The Impact on the Use of Positive Reinforcement as Motivation in Learning English as Second
Language among Students in rural Malaysian Secondary School through Online Learning

RESEARCH PROPOSAL

Submitted to Universiti Teknologi Mara Puncak Alam

Faculty of Education

In partial fulfilment of the requirements for the subject

EDU 540-INTRODUCTION TO RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

By

NUR HANIM BINTI SAHABUDDIN

UiTM Puncak Alam

August 2020

Acknowledgement

First and foremost, I would like to express my gratitude to the Almighty for giving me
health and opportunity to complete this research proposal. I would like to also express my
appreciation to Professor Dr. Ros A.Yahaya for guidance and input that have been provided
throughout the process of completing this research proposal. I am deeply grateful for the help
and support that are given by my family and friends in completion of this research proposal.
Hopefully, this research proposal will be beneficial and contribute to more knowledge for future
discussion.
 Abstract

Positive reinforcement has been in discussion of research in education over the past years. The
relationship between positive reinforcement and motivation has shown promising results in
helping students to learn second language better, particularly in English. However, not much has
been discussed on the use of positive reinforcement to motivate students in Malaysian context.
Therefore, this research is aimed to address the gap and provide more insights into maximising
the potential of positive reinforcement to motivate Malaysian secondary school students in rural
area to learn English. This study combines both qualitative and quantitative method to provide
adequate data needed to address the research gap. Hopefully, with this research proposal,
students in rural areas will benefit from a research conducted about positive reinforcement in
motivating them to learn English as second language.
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1-INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................

1.0 Introduction............................................................................................................................1

2.0 Background of the study........................................................................................................2

2.1Reinforcement.....................................................................................................................2
2.2 Motivation..........................................................................................................................2
2.3 Exposure.............................................................................................................................3
2.4 Socioeconomic...................................................................................................................3
3.0 Problem Statement.................................................................................................................4

4.0 Research Objectives...............................................................................................................5

5.0 Research Questions................................................................................................................5

6.0 Significance of Research........................................................................................................6

7.0 Limitations and Delimitations................................................................................................6

8.0 Operational Definitions..........................................................................................................7

9.0 Conclusion.............................................................................................................................8

CHAPTER 2 – LITERATURE REVIEW.........................................................................................

1.0 Introduction............................................................................................................................9

2.0 Classroom Management.........................................................................................................9

2.1 Teacher as Model to the Language...................................................................................10

2.2 Teacher-Student Relationship..........................................................................................10
3.0 Attitudes towards Second Language Learning....................................................................11

3.1 Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation....................................................................................12

3.2 Socioeconomic Status.......................................................................................................12
4.0 Related Theories..................................................................................................................13

4.1 Motivation Theory............................................................................................................13

4.2 Behaviourism and Reinforcement Theory.......................................................................14
4.3 Socio-Psychological Model..............................................................................................14
 5.0 Research Gap.......................................................................................................................14

6.0 Conclusion...........................................................................................................................15

CHAPTER 3-METHODOLOGY......................................................................................................

1.0 Introduction..........................................................................................................................16

2.0 Research Design...................................................................................................................17

3.0 Population and Sampling.....................................................................................................18

4.0 Research Instruments...........................................................................................................18

5.0 Data Analysis.......................................................................................................................20

6.0 Conclusion...........................................................................................................................20

Appendix A................................................................................................................................21

Appendix B................................................................................................................................22

References..................................................................................................................................23
CHAPTER 1-INTRODUCTION

1.0 Introduction

Motivation is a crucial factor in learning a new language. Learners are more interested in
learning something that they do not have much background knowledge on. They learn better
with teachers that keep them motivated. According to Martin and Dawson (2009, as cited in
Jackson, 2018, p. 1), they have asserted that the influence of a positive teacher and an
encouraging environment indicated there are benefits between teacher and student in the learning
community. Teachers use positive reinforcement as a strategy in motivating learners for a
language lesson. Sigler and Aamidor (2005, as cited in Smith, 2015a, p. 2) stated that positive
reinforcement is an effective way to identify and teach appropriate behaviour to students,
utilizing encouragement and reward system. When the learners are more motivated to learn, it is
easier for the teachers to conduct activities to keep the learners engaged in the lesson. Thus, by
positively reinforcing the students’ behaviour, academic or social, the students and the teacher
benefit academically, behaviourally, socially and emotionally (Marian, as cited in Rumfola,
2017a, p. 7. Well-delivered content and activities in a lesson will result in a better learning of a
new language. The more the students are engaged in the instruction, the more students will
further their success (Rumfola, 2017b, p. 6). Otero (as cited in Rumfola, 2017, p. 7) has stated
that academic engagement is linked to better study skills, academic productivity and essential
behaviour for a functioning classroom. This is important as low-achieving students need more
encourage and support from the teachers in understanding the content of the lesson. Thus, it is
necessary to explore positive reinforcement as motivation to encourage and engage the low-
achieving students in the classroom, specifically in rural secondary schools in Malaysia.

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2.0 Background of the study

For the background of the study for this research, there are four keywords that have been
identified. The keywords are reinforcement, motivation, exposure and socioeconomic. These
keywords will provide a brief explanation to the related research that have been done for the
topic of this research, and will further be discussed in detail in Chapter 2-Literature Review.

2.1 Reinforcement

Reinforcement is not a new concept in teaching and learning. Slavin (as cited in Pratiwi
et al., 2018, p. 117), stated that the definition to reinforce is any consequence that strengthens
behaviour. Reinforcement in the classroom should be used to engage and motivate the students
while keeping their behaviour under control in the classroom (Pratiwi et al., 2018).
Reinforcement can be done several ways. The one that is focused in this research is the positive
reinforcement. According to Alberto and Troutman (2012, as cited in Smith, 2015, p. 4), positive
reinforcement is a mean to teach and identify specific behaviour to a student with the intention to
see an increase in the desired behaviour. When a specific behaviour is repeated in the classroom
by the students, with lesser prompts by the teacher over time, the teacher has successfully
utilising positive reinforcement as a tool to manage the students’ behaviour as well as motivating
them to learn better in the classroom. Positive reinforcement can be done in a number of ways.
Lalli et al (1999, as cited in Smith, 2015, p. 5) stated that positive reinforcement can be done by
behaviour specific praise, individualised reward system such as a sticker chart or token economy,
edibles or positive adult attention.

2.2 Motivation

According to Britannica Encyclopedia, motivation is defined as forces acting either or

within a person to initiate behaviour. Richards et al (2002, as cited in Manzoor et al., 2015, p. 33)
defined motivation as process of starting and maintaining physical and psychological activities,
which includes mechanisms involved in preferences for one activity over the other and the vigor
and persistence of the responses. Wu and Wu (2008, as cited in Manzoor et al., 2015, p. 32)
stated that the classroom atmosphere is very much related to second language learners’
motivation. Motivation will have the students to see that their grades as the most important force
of their efforts, and not from rewards that the teachers have to constantly hand out to motivate
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the students (Rumfola, 2017b). As she further explained, the students can have the best drive but
it is the overall atmosphere of the classroom that can predict the outcome of the students. So, it is
an important task for teachers to increase the level of students’ motivation in the classroom to
learn better, specifically in a second language class session. Nakamura (as cited in Debreli et al.,
2016, p. 5) has mentioned that although motivation is something that is often viewed as
psychological arousal, it is widely known that it is something that teachers can tackle. Thus,
motivation should be use as a mean for the teachers to attract their students’ attention to learning,
especially the low achievers who struggle with socioeconomic factors in the rural areas.

2.3 Exposure

Despite having 11 years of exposure to English in Malaysian primary and secondary

levels of education, the proficiency level of students is still subpar Rahman et al., 2017). Rahman
et al (2017) have also mentioned that despite a number of students manages to get good grades
for their lower secondary schooling; they still have problems to communicate in an English
environment. Although the students have been exposed to English for a long period of time, the
problem is even more alarming to students from rural areas. This is because students who live in
rural areas do not receive as much exposure to English as compared to those from urban and
suburban areas in Malaysia (Zulkefly & Abu Bakar Razali, 2017) . So, without proper exposure to the
language, the teachers have a harder time to teach the language to the students. This can be due
to the students only being exposed to the target language at school and in classroom and most of
them do not use the target language in their daily lives (Misbah et al., 2017).

2.4 Socioeconomic

According to Buckhalt (2011 as cited in Tootle, 2017, p. 1), there is a link between
socioeconomic status to the limitations of the students’ quality of life, as well as affecting health,
education and employment. This shows that socioeconomic status plays a vital role in the
students’ overall well-being. Support from family and parents also contribute to the students’
interest in learning a second language. According to a study done by Butler (2014, as cited in
Fernández Sanjurjo et al., 2018, p, 18), it is reported that parents with higher social background
were able to bring their children better opportunities to learn English outside the school in order
to support their children more efficiently. However, as for the students who live in rural areas,

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this is clearly not the same case for them. Ler (2012, as cited in Zulkefly & Abu Bakar Razali, 2017,
p. 12) mentioned that the English proficiency of most Malaysian students, especially those at the
rural areas, is at a worrying level. This is further proven by the students’ ability to perform well
in English may be due to certain factors, such as the socioeconomic background of the parents as
well as motivation gained from the teachers Chai, Wong &King, 2016, as cited in Zakaria et al.,
2018, p. 2358).

The students’ performance in English language learning is largely related to the motivation
and the reinforcement that they receive in the classroom. For students who live in rural areas, it
is a big challenge for them since they receive less exposure to English as compared to their peers
in urban and suburban areas. Their socioeconomic background also plays a role in their interest
in learning a second language where local settlers usually communicate using their ethnic dialect
instead (Misbah et al., 2017).

3.0 Problem Statement

Despite a number of previous researches have been done on impact of positive reinforcement
in classroom, not much has been discussed on how it is used as a tool to enhance teaching and
learning in rural secondary schools. The research on positive reinforcement to motivate students
especially in rural Malaysian secondary school is also scarce. As the level of English proficiency
among rural students is also worrying, therefore there is a need for the teachers to use positive
reinforcement as a mean to motivate students to be interested in learning English. Due to the lack
of research conducted on this topic in Malaysian context, this research is meant to fill in the
research gap and provide more information on how positive reinforcement can be implemented
to motivate students at rural secondary schools. Thus, this study is aimed on the impact of the
positive reinforcement used to motivate the students in learning English as a second language,
particularly in rural Malaysian secondary school through online learning.

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4.0 Research Objectives

For this research, three research objectives are formulated:

i) To analyse the types of positive reinforcement used as motivation in English learning as

a second language among students in Malaysian rural secondary school through Online
Learning.

ii) To observe on the students’ responses to the use of positive reinforcement as motivation
in English learning as a second language among students in Malaysian rural secondary
school through Online Learning.

iii) To investigate how teachers implement positive reinforcement as motivation in English

learning as a second language among students in Malaysian rural secondary school
through Online Learning.

5.0 Research Questions

For this research, three research questions are formulated:
i) What are the types of positive reinforcement used as motivation in English learning as a
second language among students in Malaysian rural secondary school through Online-
Learning?
ii) What are the students’ responses to the use of positive reinforcement as motivation in
English learning as a second language among students in Malaysian rural secondary
school through Online Learning?
iii) How do teachers implement positive reinforcement as motivation in English learning as
a second language among students in Malaysian rural secondary school through Online-
Learning?

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6.0 Significance of research
The teachers’ influence towards second language teaching within a classroom may affect
the performance of a student (Rahman et al., 2017). Therefore, it is necessary that the
teachers apply proper strategy in making sure that second language learning is motivating to
the students. As for this research, the strategy that is focused on in motivating the rural
students is positive reinforcement. This strategy is versatile and can be applied for students
of any age, gender, or disability and for any problem behaviour (Maag, 2001 as cited in
Smith, 2015, p. 1). This is important because if the students are not motivated to learn, then
they will have problems in the future. This is supported by the fact that despite getting 11
years of English learning in primary and secondary school, most rural students in Malaysia
can hardly master English (Hussein Islam & Parilah, 2014, as cited in Zulkefly & Abu Bakar
Razali, 2017, p. 23). This alarming problem should be taken into consideration and by
observing the impact of positive reinforcement in motivating the rural secondary students, it
is hopefully that the teaching of English can be improved in the future and the students will
be much more interested in learning English and realising its importance in their lives.

7.0 Limitations & Delimitations

Limitations to this research are in terms of the method of teaching and the exposure to
English of the students outside of the classroom. The researcher has no control over the type
of positive reinforcement that the teacher applies in the classroom. The teacher has full
control over how the positive reinforcement is implemented in the classroom with no
external influence or bias from the researcher. This will keep the research on track and
provides findings to answer the research question of how the positive reinforcement is
applied during the lesson. Apart from that, the researcher also has no control over how much
exposure of English that the students have outside of the classroom. Students who have more
exposure may show a more positive attitude towards English language learning than those
who do not. However, the findings are only limited to what is observed during online lesson
to see the students’ responses to positive reinforcement in an online setting.
Delimitations to this research are in terms of only the rural secondary schools are
included in this research and this research is only meant for secondary school students. The
location is set to be throughout Malaysia as the current teaching and learning method is

6
 conducted online nationwide. This research is also conducted within the context of
secondary school students to fill in the gap of the previous research that have not much
focused on positive reinforcement as a strategy to motivate students in rural secondary
school.

8.0 Operational Definitions (check intext citation)

These are the definitions of the terms that are used specifically in this research:

Second language learning is defined as the formal learning of a language in the classroom
(Definition of Second Language Acquisition and Learning, 2010). For this research, second
language learning refers to the formal learning of English as second language in the
classroom.

Online Learning is defined as a form of learning that uses the internet as a delivery
modality to offer thoughtfully designed, quality, student-focused learning experiences, built
on proven best practices that create effective interactions between learners, peers,
instructors, and content. (Jennifer Mathes, 2020)

Language Proficiency is defined as how well a person has mastered a language

(Education.com). In this research context, the students’ language proficiency refers to the
mastery of students in English as their second language.

Frequency is defined as the fact or condition of occurring frequently (et al, n.d). In this
research, frequency refers to the number of positive reinforcements used as motivation
during English lesson at rural secondary school.

Student Engagement is defined as students’ motivation and opportunity to practice which

then leads to learning and mastery of particular skill (Tincani, 2016). For this research,
student engagement refers to the students’ response to the positive reinforcement as
motivation in classroom during English lessons.

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9.0 Conclusion

For the conclusion, the students’ motivation towards second language learning is affected
by several factors as discussed above, such as exposure to English and socioeconomic
influence on the background of the students. The use of positive reinforcement as motivation
in classroom is not discussed much in Malaysian education context. As the level of English
proficiency among rural students is not satisfactory and needs improvement, it is time that
teachers utilise positive reinforcement as a mean to motivate the students in the online
classroom. Therefore, in the next chapter, the benefit and history of positive reinforcement
will be discussed even deeper as well as how the external factors such as exposure to English
and socioeconomic factor affect the students’ interest towards learning English as second
language.

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 CHAPTER 2-LITERATURE REVIEW

1.0 Introduction

In this chapter, more information and insights will be provided on how positive
reinforcement has influenced the education setting as well as digging deeper into how the
external factors of socioeconomic and exposure to English affect the students’ interest in
learning English as their second language. Related theories to this topic will also be
discussed and gap from previous research will also be provided to show that this topic needs
more input and research to be focused on for the benefit of students in rural areas.

2.0 Classroom Management

The teacher is the overall figure that runs and manages the classroom (Vijayan et al.,
2016). The success of the lesson depends on how well the teacher manages the classroom and
handling the students’ behaviour. Teaching goes beyond of just delivering the content to the
students but also encompasses the responsibility of setting classroom environment. This is
done to make sure that the learning process occurs successfully. What the teacher does in the
classroom affects the classroom management, and this includes; creating the setting,
arranging the chairs, speaking to children and handling their responses, decorating the room,
putting routines in place, developing and communicating the rules to the students and these
are all the aspects of classroom management (Sieberer-Nagler, 2015). This shows that the
teacher is responsible on creating the positive environment for the learning process to take
place and not only just focused to the teaching aspects.

Apart from that, the teacher also has to manage the students’ behaviour as well so that the
lesson goes on smoothly. Diedrich (2010 as cited in Sumeyya Cetin, 2018, p. 7) mentioned
that certain teaching strategies and strong skills help the teachers to manage the classrooms
as the teachers teach different types of things to suit the needs of the learners. Hence, for this
study, the positive reinforcement method is used to help the teachers manage the needs and
motivation of the students to learn. Some teachers think whether they are supposed to reward
their learners when they behave as expected as some teachers believe that rewarding the

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students are the parents’ responsibilities (Sumeyya Cetin, 2018). However, Cetin (2018)
mentioned that behavioural training research claims that positive reinforcement is needed
when students perform the expected behaviour. So, it is important that teachers utilise
positive reinforcement for the betterment of their students’ learning performance in the class.

The problems that teachers face when managing the students’ behaviour are also the
fundamental problems to the students’ motivation (Sieberer-Nagler, 2015). Ur (1996, as
stated in Khasinah, 2017, p. 80) has stated that students’ motivation can be utilised for
teachers to control their classroom from disruptive atmosphere. Thus, this shows that there is
a close relationship between how classroom management affected the motivation of the
students in the classroom.

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 2.1 Teacher as Model of the Language

The motivation of the students can be greatly affected by recruitment of teachers who
have passion in teaching their subject (Sieberer-Nagler, 2015). Teachers who are passionate with
what they teach in the classroom exhibit good model language to the students as well as showing
more positive behaviour for the students to emulate. They will also be showing more enthusiasm
by positively reinforcing good behaviour in the classroom to their students. Teachers who are
excited with what they are teaching will likely have their students to adopt the same attitude in
the classroom (Vijayan et al., 2016). Herrel and Jordan (2017, as cited in Vijayan et al., 2016)
has mentioned that teachers provide examples of ways students support each other with words of
encouragement, questions of clarification and entry for collaboration by serving as powerful
model in the classroom. So, this further suggests that teacher should be the model in showing
how the language should be used appropriately and providing space for students to express
themselves creatively in the target language. The teachers have to demonstrate by serving as
behavioural model when interacting with the students so that their creativity can be developed
(Soh, 2017). Positive reinforcement through teacher’s behaviour as model to the language
combined with creativity will lead to an increase of the students’ motivation for second language
learning.

2.2 Teacher-Student Relationship

Wong & Wong (2009, as cited in (Vijayan et al., 2016) stated that teachers that are
proficient and proactive are more capable in impacting their students’ lives than teachers who are
not. The teachers’ relationship with the students plays a big impact on the learning environment
that the students are in. The relationship between teachers and students has to be based on trust
so that the students feel comfortable (Vijayan et al, 2016). The context of teacher-student
relationship also has relation to the emotional element. Students usually feel close to their
admired teachers based on emotional ties and this provides them with a sense of psychological
affiliation and safety (Soh, 2017). Therefore, if students have good relationship with their
teachers, then they will likely respond to the lesson better. Khajloo (2013, as cited in Khasinah,
2017) claims that students who are motivated by love for their English teachers will become
more interested in learning English. Apart from that, teachers also have to build rapport with
their students in order to improve the teacher-student relationship in the classroom. Rapport is
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defined as relationship or connection between students and teachers that produce positive energy
in the language classroom (Khasinah, 2017). By providing positive reinforcement in the
classroom to motivate the students, a rapport can be established between teachers and students
thus gaining their interest in learning and seeing significance of English as their second
language.

3.0 Attitude towards Second Language Learning

Attitude of the students towards second language learning reflects their interest in seeing
the significance of learning a second language in their daily life. Motivations, attitudes and set of
beliefs about language learning are among the factors that will determine and influence the
students’ efficiency in the language class (Bhatti et al., 2021). Students who show negative
attitudes towards learning English are most likely not interested in learning the language in the
first place. This can be due to students that stay in remote areas cannot see the practicality of a
second language in their community circle, thus contributing to a negative attitude towards
second language learning (Zulkefly & Abu Bakar Razali, 2017). The level of English proficiency
among rural students also has repeatedly been reported as worrying. Most Malaysian students,
particularly those in rural areas, only experience minimal contact with English, which is only
during their English classes (Normazidah et al, as cited in Zulkefly & Abu Bakar Razali, 2017). This
shows that these students are lacking in exposure to English and the language is only limited to
classroom settings and no more than that. As cited in Mirhadizadeh (2016), the source of
motivation to learn second language can be traced into the society where the students live in. She
explains that outside the classroom there are attitudes in the society that affect how the students
perceive second language, particularly English. The students’ attitudes are likely to be affected
with how the society surrounding the students perceives English. The strength of these attitudes
also affects the motivation of the students to learn the language. If the attitude of the society to
English is positive, then the students are more likely to have positive attitude towards learning
the language and vice versa. Tom, Aiza, Awang & Siti (2013, as cited in (Zulkefly & Abu Bakar
Razali, 2017) have found that many students in Malaysia actually perceive English as foreign
language that are only been used orally during language lesson. This further suggests that there is
a negative perception of students towards learning English as second language in this country,
including of those who stay in rural areas.

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3.1 Attitudes Towards Online Learning

Online learning has been essential in the modern era nowadays. Students’ attitudes
towards online learning will determine how well they respond to the change in teaching and
learning method. As the students’ attitudes are driven by their motivation, it is important to take
a look on how they perceive online learning in the first place. According to Thomas & Rogers
(2020), studying at home will impact some age groups more than the others with teenagers
specifically are more likely to be adversely affected as their emotional development propels them
to move away from parents and carers to be towards their friends and peers instead. This is an
interesting insight as this research is also focused on secondary school students and how the use
of positive reinforcement can serve to motivate them in online learning.

According to UNESCO IESALC (2020, as cited in Zainol et al., 2021), online learning
poses challenges in terms of the lack of ability to access and involve in online learning which
requires students’ commitments and disciplines, to be specific for vulnerable students who are in
need of communication that allows for reinforcement of their social skills. Since online learning
is highly dependent on the availability of equipment, many students are left behind and unable to
join the classes. Since online learning has been going on for some time, students are left
unmotivated with lack of social skills due to the constraint in socialising and meeting their peers
during this pandemic. Randy (2011, as cited in Zainol et al., 2021) mentioned that some students
have lesser knowledge about computer literacy and self-motivation which leads them to online
learning. This lack of technological literacy and combined with lowered self-motivation due to
constraint of meeting up with peers may have caused negative attitude from the students towards
online learning. Hence, the teachers have to utilise one of the tools in motivating students which
is positive reinforcement to bring the students’ attention back on online classes.

3.2 Positive Reinforcement

A reinforcer is a stimulus or event that follows a behaviour and increases the frequency
of the said behaviour (Miller, 2006 as cited in Sumeyya Cetin, 2018). Positive reinforcement
13
such as in the form of positive feedback, rewards system and praise will boost the students’
motivation extrinsically and in the long term, motivate the students internally. Positive
reinforcement occurs when the behaviour that are attempted to be produced increases the
probability of the desired behaviour to continue (Pusparini, 2019). This is important so that the
students will continue producing the desired behaviour of being motivated and interested to learn
during the lessons. Smith (as cited in Sumeyya Cetin, 2018)) mentioned there are different types
of reinforcers: natural and direct reinforcers, social, activity, tangible and token reinforcers. The
reinforcers by Smith (as cited in Cetin, 2018) are explained as follows:

i) natural and direct reinforcers, as the name suggests, are provided when the
expected behaviours are performed and the reinforcers are given directly.

ii) Social reinforcers including praise, body languages such as clapping, nodding and
verbal comments such as ‘Good job’ and ‘Great’ are provided by people in the
students’ environment to encourage the expected behaviour.

iii) Activity reinforcers are reinforcers in the form of activities such as games where
the students can pick their own partner and allowing them to participate in the
activities.

iv) Tangible reinforcers such as stickers, toys, edibles and other things that can be
hold are strong reinforcements especially for young learners.

v) Token reinforcers are points and tokens that are awarded for appropriate
behaviours where they can be exchanged with valuable things later on.

Harmer (2001, as cited in (Mirhadizadeh, 2016) suggested that one can also imagine
where there is a situation that intrinsic and extrinsic rewards might correlate, as it was, to
motivate learning. So, the teachers should make use of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation to form
and develop the students’ positive attitude towards second language learning.

3.3 Socioeconomic Status

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 Socioeconomic status is referred to as an individual’s place in the society and strongly
gives influence on the individual’s experience during childhood and adult life (Hackman et al
2010; Lipina & Segretin, 2015 as cited in (da Rosa Piccolo et al., 2016). In childhood and
adolescence study, it is measured by family income and parental education (ABEP, 2009, as
cited in (Da et al., 2016). Socioeconomic status plays a huge external factor in determining the
students’ attitude towards second language learning outside the classroom settings. Bradley &
Cordwyn (2002 as cited in Gathercole et al., 2016) stated that socioeconomic status has profound
and long-lasting effects on children’s linguistic performance, as well as influencing cognitive
performance, socioemotional well-being and health. Good and Brophy (1990 as cited in
Mirhadizadeh, 2016) mentions that parental educational level is important to the teachers as it
reflects the parents’ attitudes and interests towards education. This shows that parents have a
vital role in showing the significance of education to their children ever since from home. This
places a priority on the teacher to know about the social background of their students since the
attitudes towards learning a language are shared by either the members of society where they live
or people closest to them, such as family or friends (Mirhadizadeh, 2016). The teacher needs to
figure out how the background of the student influences the way the students perceive language
learning and therefore takes the necessary actions if the students show negative perceptions
towards it. This is important to avoid the negative attitudes towards the language learning to be
fossilized and contributes to the decreasing motivation and interest of the students in learning a
language.

According to Fishbane and Tomer (2020, as cited in Adedoyin & Soykan, 2020), their
research findings have shown that students who have no internet access with no or low socio-
economic power to afford broadband connection during the Covid-19 pandemic, are to be the
most vulnerable and fall behind their peers in online learning as the level of poverty increases in
the community. The increasing rate of poverty level in the community also results in the rapid
declining of internet accessibilities (Fishbane and Tomer, 2020, as cited in (Adedoyin & Soykan,
2020)). This rate of poverty level is also related with usage barrier. According to Lee (2020, as
cited in Zainol et al., 2021), based on the data collected, 60% of Sabahan students reported that
the internet access is unstable or inadequate meanwhile only 24% of students in urban areas have
access to devices with internet connection. The lack of proper devices and internet connection

15
which are essential for language learning especially via online mode will definitely hinder the
progress of language learning among students.

Thus, it is important that these issues are addressed so that the teachers will be able to
help and motivate the students throughout the implementation of online learning.

4.0 Related Theories

For this research, there are three related theories to the topic. The theories are the
Motivation Theory by Gardner (1985), Behaviourism and Reinforcement Theory by Skinner
(1957) and Socio-Psychological Model (Lambert, 1974).

4.1 Motivation Theory

Gardner (1985 as cited in (Loganathan & Zafar, 2016) proposed that for a learner to be
motivated, the learner needs to have something to look forward to, such as a purpose related to
goal or objective. He also proposed that for a learner to be successful in second language
learning, the learner needs to have integrative motivation. Integrative motivation is defined as the
learner showing positive attitude and motivation towards the target culture, thus making the
second language learner to become easily as part of the second language culture. On the other
hand, instrumental orientation is defined as learning a second language for pragmatic reasons,
such as getting a better job or higher salary (Lai, 2013). In his theory, he also proposed that there
are three components to motivation in second language learning. They are motivational intensity
or effort, desire to learn the language and attitudes towards learning the language (Loganathan &
Zafar, 2016).

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4.2 Behaviourism and Reinforcement Theory

In 1957, B.F Skinner has proposed behaviourism and reinforcement theory which is
widely used in education and psychology fields. He believed that positive reinforcement is very
much important in improving learning and behaviour (Manzoor et al., 2015). Frisoli (2008 as
cited in Manzoor et al., 2015) stated that his works point out that there are five obstacles to
learning. The obstacles are fear of failure, long and difficult task, tasks that lack of direction,
ambiguous directions and lack of positive reinforcement. Chitiyo and Wheeler (2009 as cited in
Manzoor et al, 2015) stated that the students’ behaviour can be improved by making model class
room environment for behaviour. This means that a good classroom environment can be
established by the teacher positively reinforcing the desired behaviour to the students.

4.3 Socio-Psychological Model

In this model, Lambert (1974 as cited Khalid, 2016) proposed that the learners’ attitude
towards the target language and their orientation towards learning the second language determine
their motivation in acquiring a language. This model also proposed that the development of
second language proficiency will give implications on the learner’s self-identity (Khalid, 2016).
He suggested that the linguistic distinctiveness originates from early socialization process, such
as parents making contrast between their own and also with other social communities. This is
done to help the children construct their social identity. This theory also suggests that language
distinctiveness is the building block of personal identity. As a result, he proposed that language
plays the main role in constructing an individual sense of identity.

5.0 Research Gap

Numerous studies have been done on the topic of positive reinforcement and motivation.
However, there is still gap from the previous research where there is no study on the link
between using positive reinforcement as motivation for students in rural secondary school.
Previously, the study done by (Zulkefly & Abu Bakar Razali, 2017) has provided some insights and
information into the level of English proficiency among students in rural secondary school. Their
research which is conducted in a rural district in a southern state in Peninsular Malaysia reveals
the findings that the students do not enjoy the English lessons that they have in school, including
the students who shows positive attitudes towards the learning of English. This has provided a
17
gap for a study to observe where the teachers can utilise positive reinforcement as motivation in
the classroom. Another study which is conducted in rural area of Pakistan by Manzoor et al
(2016) has also provided some information into the use of positive reinforcement, particularly
motivational expressions in English lessons. This study, which is conducted for primary level,
has revealed that the students show improvement in the lessons after the researcher encourages
the students through positive reinforcement such as giving praises and provides drilling for the
content of the lesson. These positive findings show there is an urge to observe the effect of
positive reinforcement for secondary school for students from rural areas in Malaysia. A study
which is conducted in a suburban area by Zakaria, Zakaria & Azmi (2018) reveals that the
secondary school students are not really aware of the learning strategies in a language lesson.
This study further suggests that there is a need for future research where teachers introduce new
strategies in learning a language in the classroom. Therefore, the present study is intended to fill
in the research gap where positive reinforcement is used as motivation for rural secondary school
students in their English lessons.

6.0 Conclusion

Despite the fact that positive reinforcement is widely discussed in related theories and
research literature, there is still a need to observe its impact on English language learning for
Malaysian secondary school students. A link has to be established between the usage of positive
reinforcement in classroom and utilising it as a tool to motivate students and by combining them
together, the students may see the impact and be more interested in learning the language. As the
results from previous research on positive reinforcement in language learning are promising,
therefore this is the time where positive reinforcement should be utilised in local secondary
schools to enhance the learning of English as a second language.

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 CHAPTER 3 – METHODOLOGY

1.0 Introduction

Positive reinforcement and motivation have long been in discussions and debate among
researchers in the education fields. The findings from previous research have provided a gap
where there is a link that can be established on using positive reinforcement as motivation,
focusing on English language online learning among rural secondary school students in
Malaysia. So, in order for the research to be conducted, the following research objectives and
research questions have been formulated in order to observe the impact of positive
reinforcement as motivation with English language learning among rural secondary school
students in Malaysia through online learning.

For this research, three research objectives are formulated:

i) To analyse the type of positive reinforcement used as motivation in English learning as a

second language among students in Malaysian rural secondary school through online
learning.

ii) To observe on the students’ responses to the use of positive reinforcement as motivation
in English learning as a second language among students in Malaysian rural secondary
school through online learning.

iii) To investigate how teachers implement positive reinforcement as motivation in English

learning as a second language among students in Malaysian rural secondary school
through online learning.

19
 For this research, three research questions are formulated:

i) What are the types of positive reinforcement used as motivation in English learning as a
second language among students in Malaysian rural secondary school through online
learning?

ii) What are the students’ responses to the use of positive reinforcement as motivation in
English learning as a second language among students in Malaysian rural secondary
school through online learning?

iii) How do teachers implement positive reinforcement as motivation in English learning as a

second language among students in Malaysian rural secondary school through online
learning?

2.0 Research Design

For this research, a case study approach by qualitative method is adopted to answer the
research questions. This approach is chosen because the research questions focus on the types
and how the positive reinforcement are conducted in the classroom as well as gathering
information from the trainee teacher’s observation of the students’ engagement to the use of
positive reinforcement as motivation in the classroom. As Patton and Cochran (2002, as cited
in (Zulkefly & Abu Bakar Razali, 2017) mentioned, qualitative research is aimed at seeking to
understand the aspects of social life than just producing numbers. Qualitative approach is
done as it is suitable for interviews that are needed to be conducted in order to answer the
research questions.

20
3.0 Research Instruments
The instrument in this research is taken from one of the qualitative method research
instruments. The qualitative instrument used in this research is semi-structured face to face
interviews.

i) Semi-structured interviews

Each participant is involved in one interview session. There are eight interview sessions
that are conducted altogether. Patton (1990, as cited in Khalid, 2016) suggested that when
interviews are structured and organised, they can be data collection tool that are effective.
The first part of the interview is the participants are asked of their personal and social
background. The questions are in open-ended format as to give the time and space for the
trainee teachers to answer the questions honestly. The second part of the interview is where
the participants are asked of their observation towards the students’ responses when positive
reinforcements are used in the during lessons.

4.0 Population and Sampling

The sampling method is purposive. Eight trainee teachers who have completed their
practicum in rural secondary schools around Malaysia are selected for this research. These
trainee teachers are Semester 8 and final-year students from Bachelor in Teaching English as
Second Language (TESL). The selected participants have also conducted their teaching
session via online mode during the practicum period. (age, gender, experience)

5.0 Data Collection Procedures

The data collection is conducted in two phases. The first phase is the selection of the
participants for the research. Trainee teachers that meet the requirement for this research are
asked for consent to be the participants for the semi-structured interview sessions. After the
permissions are granted by the participants, the researcher proceeds to the second phase. The

21
 second phase is the data collection session. The interview sessions with the selected trainee
teachers are conducted. The interview sessions are conducted in a semi-formal setting.
(date of interview, where, iv period, how the participants responded,

6.0 Data Analysis

The data collected for this research are sourced from semi-structured interview sessions. The
qualitative data for this research are analysed through thematic coding. The data are all compiled
and the researcher goes through data thoroughly before breaking them down into parts (Yin,
2011 as cited in (Zulkefly & Abu Bakar Razali, 2017) . Then, the data are arranged into their
consecutive themes. The themes are analysed based on the framework of this research which are
psychological factors and socioeconomic factors. The process is repeated until the data from
each instrument and each participant have all been analysed. After that, the researcher makes the
overall analysis and makes the conclusion for the overall data (Yin, 2011 as cited in Zulkefly &
Razali, 2017).

7.0 Conclusion

In conclusion, this research uses the qualitative method and case study approach to provide
data needed to answer the research questions. The population and sampling for this research have
also been explained and covered in this chapter. The data needed to be collected are done by via
semi-structured interviews. The procedures for the data collection have also been explained as
well as the detailed explanation on the instruments that are used in this research.

22
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